1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention relate to a method of separating and recovering metals and a system for separating and recovering metals.
2. Description of the Related Art
When an atomic power plant loses its cooling capability due to a nuclear accident, there is possibility that the fuel assembly and the reactor core structure are heated to be melted by decay heat of the nuclear fuel, thereby producing a molten core material. In the molten core material, there coexist non-uniformly various materials, such as iron based materials constituting reactor internal structures etc., zirconium material which is a material for cladding tubes and channel boxes, oxide fuels such as uranium oxide and plutonium oxide contained in the nuclear fuel, and the like.
The cost and labor to store and manage radioactive wastes increase as the amount of the wastes increases. Accordingly, when treating the molten core material as a radioactive waste, there is a demand for a method of separating and recovering components other than radioactive wastes, thereby reducing the amount to be managed and stored as a high-level radioactive waste; see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2013-88117A.